The sorrow of summer is the goodbye to family as they flee to more clement zones. Standing at the "passengers only" barrier in Terminal 3, flanked by other fathers waving farewell to their broods, it is as if we're all left on a ship having safely dispatched our kin to the life rafts. Few people seem to know what to do.
The place fizzes with nervous energy. A handful of Etihad staff try to impose some semblance of order. They hurry from group to group telling people to use the self-check in machines, guiding them through the process, struggling as the screen freezes at a vital moment and once again abandoning them to fend for themselves.
Goodbyes never really bothered me before Astrid was born. What's the problem, I used to think, I'll see you again in a few days, weeks or months. Usually I was the one leaving, the person going somewhere or doing something. Even if I was the one being left behind, I always managed to frame the absence so that I had something to look forward to, something to fill the gap and make the time pass more quickly.
Saying goodbye to Astrid as she heads off to the UK is different. I'm surprised by its rawness. So much can happen in a month of Astrid's life. She will have changed perceptibly if not dramatically. She will have learnt new skills, developed new mannerisms, acquired fresh quirks. I will miss out on these moments. This realisation does not strike me until I come to say goodbye. Astrid is in her pushchair and as I bend down to kiss her I am mugged by emotion, pricked by the premonition of the pain of her absence, struck by the yawning chasm she will leave in her wake. Suddenly I feel tears welling up in my eye sockets.
I stand waiting for a last wave before they disappear through passport control. Next to me the father of another family is already turning to leave. He seems less perturbed by his goodbye than I do. His children are older. He's been through this process many times before. I turn to fight my way through the crowds back to the entrance.
Back at home, the apartment is quiet and empty. The day stretches out before me like a desert that is featureless and uncharted.
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Ferrari
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NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
- If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
- By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
- Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
- Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Brief scoreline:
Manchester United 0
Manchester City 2
Bernardo Silva 54', Sane 66'
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The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills